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The film and model industry has not only been booming in the Western Cape but also in Gauteng. The current immigration legislation recognized the importance of the industry and created a special three year visa, which is a visitor’s visa, for employees or professionals working in this sector.

The agreement; designed specifically for teams coming to South Africa to produce television commercials, makes provision for two categories of advertising professionals, namely those offering “oversight”, as well as “specialists”. The former describes individuals who are not directly working within the Republic but rather operate in a more organizational capacity, whereas the latter entails more active participation in the commercial itself, such as actors and directors. Those falling within the “oversight” category can now receive their visitor’s visa upon entry into South Africa, and can forego having to pre-apply at an embassy beforehand.

Some significant changes include:

You will no longer have to submit your visa application in the country of passport or the country of usual residence. Submissions can now take place in the country where actors and others are currently shooting. It is important to note that the visa application must be accompanied by a letter from one of the recognized professional bodies.

Visas will no longer be issued with the name of the company for which the applicant will work for anymore. The crucial requirement here is that either application must be accompanied by a letter from FIVA (Film Industry Visa Assistance NPC). This letter must be present when applying for the appropriate visa.

Processing times are now shorter and in line with short term visas in most embassies, which are between 5-10 working days and the long term visitor’s visa should be issued within thirty days. The directive reduces this to take 10 days which is significantly faster than other work visas at other embassies.

The 3 year visa is a multiple entry visa, therefore people can come for shorter stays or longer stays as the work requires.

If you are looking for additional information regarding visas, make sure you get in touch with one of our Consultants today.